Gray Girling

(Tailored Curriculum Vitae on request: Tel: 01223 561817, Email: cgg@cantab.net)

Personal details:

Dr C Gray Girling, married, two children
Cambridge, UK
Born: 18-08-56, Felixstowe, Suffolk, UK
Web: http://homepage.ntlworld.com/gray.girling/work/

Gray is a practiced network security researcher and a capable computing system designer. He is as happy writing embedded C software near to the software/hardware boundary as specifying protocols or designing distributed security architectures. Experienced at providing constructive criticism he enjoys any mix of academic supervision & review, design, documentation and programming. With an enquiring nature Gray is always interested in investigating new technology and methods. A friendly and positive attitude means that his capacity to work independently is complemented by an ability to fit in as part of a group.

Education:

Cambridge University, Ph.D. in Computer Science (Authentication in Computer networks)

Imperial College of Science and Technology B.Sc.(Eng) in Computer Science (2.1)

Professional status:

Chartered Engineer (C.Eng.)
Member of British Computer Society (MBCS)
Associate of City and Guilds Institute (ACGI)
Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

Areas of expertise (these are summarized below the following Employment section ):

Computer system security
Security and communications (OSI) related standardization
Formal requirements specification
LAN and WAN networking, protocol design and implementation
Open Distributed Processing standardization
Software Engineering (Embedded & Application programming)
Project management
Academic
Hardware design

Research Interests

Two current research interests are Location Information Security, and "Quiver", an Intermediate language between Policy and Mechanism.  They are described at http://homepage.ntlworld.com/gray.girling/work/Research_Interests.html.

Employment:

AT&T Laboratories Cambridge/
Olivetti and Oracle Research Laboratory/
Olivetti Research Laboratory (from Sep 1994 to Apr 2002)

Supervisory contribution to a series (2) of PhDs on Location Information security (over the period): one concerning anonymity within a location sensing network and the other concerning location information confidentiality beyond such a network.

Supervision of 4th year B.A. project involving the pragmatic use of existing open-source tools for the construction of a secure voice-over-IP system.

"Quiver" compact Prolog-like language design, specification and implementation (in C) for program and data migration between embedded computer nodes + LINDA implementation for event communication.  Ports to Linux, ARM embedded system and Toshiba microcontroller.  Part of the remit for this language is to provide an intermediate between policy specification and implementation.

Initial design of Muti-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) network to "Ethernet Virtual Circuits" gateway using an Intel IXP 1200 processor using Columbia University's "netbind" software (involves ARM Linux).

Consumer broadband - Internet TV to home - project in Liaison with AT&T Laboratories in Florham Park, New Jersey - port Linux to Banyan (IDT 79RC32355)/Datapath ATM switch.  This included writing a Linux ATM driver and substantially improving an Ethernet one.

Leader of a small team implementing Prototype Embedded Network (PEN) pico-radio network systems - low power ad-hoc mobile networking with no "base" station - design & implementation (in C) of protocols.

Web CGI interface to daily sensor network readings compiled by PEN nodes (HTML/shell /expect/perl scripts & C).

"EEK" real-time operating system (RTOS) design & implementation (C/assembler) including portable kernel, memory management, streams, accurate timer service, event mechanism, portable interrupt mechanism; documentation and user support, ports to Toshiba TLCS microprocessor and ARM and strong-ARM hardware platforms.  Modular O/S-generic build environment using an ad-hoc system specification language.

Review of a number of commercial and academic real-time operating systems (including Nucleus, pSOS, QNX, VxWorks and Cambridge University's "Nemesis").

Design and implementation (in C) of Linux Ethernet (ATM LAN Emulation) driver for Virata ATM protocol processor Network Interface Card (NIC).

Monitor ROMs (c.f. "BIOS") for various ARM-based hardware platforms and support for EEPROM & flash filing system, remote debugging (ATM protocol), ATM support, self testing, booting from serial ROM (C/assembler).

ROM and ATMos (ATM Operating System) remote debugging servers and Unix & Windows clients - ATM and PCI bus transport mechanisms - remote booting, breakpointing, register modification etc. (in C).

Internet (TCP/IP) protocol stack design and implementation (in C/C++) for "ATMOS" embedded operating system including related protocols: ICMP, UDP, RIP II; over AAL5 (ATM protocol) and over Ethernet; ARP, RARP over Ethernet; implementation of "MIB II" SNMP management information base.  This was transferred to a spin-out company (now GlobespanVirata) and became a core part of its product portfolio.

Integration of Xpress Transport Protocol (XTP) with TCP/IP (on ATMOS) and general protocol performance evaluation (C++).

Routine maintenance of two ATM networks with about 150 nodes.

Documentation of "ATMOS" kernel and development environment and user support (Framemaker/Word/HTML).

Architecture Projects Management (from Oct 1992)

Business unit:

Open Distributed Processing (ODP) Security Standardization (over six months) for DTI and British Standards Institute - Delivering Information Solutions to Customers (BSI/DISC) (standards contribution, ISO meeting attendance).

R&D in Advanced Communications technologies in Europe (RACE) II "Cassiopeia" project dealing with the application of ODP to Telecommunications (over eight months) for Cray Communications Ltd (programme evaluation and recommendations).

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Programme of Research on Conformance Testing (PROST) ODP scoping study (over seven months) - (report editor and contributor).

Defence Research Agency (DRA) Technology Demonstrator - security architecture analysis (over three weeks) for DMR UK (consultancy report).

Research unit:

Advanced Network System Architecture (ANSA) Phase III "federation" work (the integration of heterogeneous distributed computing systems) - in particular the design, as part of a team of 4, of an advanced properties "trader" based on extant database technology.

 

Perihelion Software - Cambridge Office (from 1991)

Advancement of the Security Framework Standard (ISO 10181) in the UK (continuing for the whole period) for DTI & BSI. (Chairing BSI committee, attendance at ISO meetings, submission of and comment on standards contributions.)

"COMPOSITE" Commission of the European Communities (CEC) Security Investigations project - development of security architectures/principles for distributed computer systems (consultancy report writing).

Transputer-based IED fault tolerant system demonstrator project - fault tolerance model (for six months) for DTI (consultancy report writing).

Analysis of security provision in "ITRON" radio-based wide area utilities servicing network (over 1 month) for a UK Utilities consortium (consultancy report writing).

Unix (SunOS) and Acorn RISC-OS system maintenance.

Topexpress (from 1985)

Advancement of the Security Framework (ISO 10181) Standard in the UK which sought to provide definitions and network mechanisms for authentication, access control, non-repudiation, integrity, confidentiality and security audit with additional material on security domains and security policies

Involvement in national, European and international standards creation (over three years) for DTI and BSI/DISC, including specification of a taxonomy of security standardization in the CEN/CENELEC IT ad-hoc Experts Group on Security (used to drive European standardization work).

Computer security in distributed computer (Trusted NETwork) systems - various non-open research (over six years) for the Communications-Electronics Security Group at Government Communications Headquarters including: formal modeling of confidentiality; specification of a layered architecture for secure distributed systems (a 250 page "conceptual model"); evaluation of US trusted computing standards; and, a demonstration of covert-channel capacity on LANs.

"TopMail" extension - design of AppleTalk product extension to interwork with X.400 (over three months) for Topexpress.

Postscript drivers for word processors and "GCAL" markup language (in C).

Acorn Computers (from 1983)

Distributed mail server design and implementation (over 1 year) for Acorn

Cambridge University Computer Laboratory (from 1978)

Distributed authentication and access control service design, implementation and maintenance (Thesis) (over the period) (BCPL, Z80 assembler).

DTI Project "UNIVERSE" authentication experiment and demonstrations - including of low level Cambridge Ring protocols implementation (6502 assembler, BASIC) on Acorn BBC microprocessor (over the period).

"Gyp" debugging server together with a small networking operating system implementation (assembler) on Z80 (over 1 year).

Distributed system maintenance, help system implementation (own markup language).

Implementation (BCPL) and maintenance of a set of microprocessor assemblers (over the period).

Extra-curricular activity:

Interests in travel, SCUBA diving, high diving, swimming, skiing, food, wine, films.

Home network with 6 PCs, inc. "TV PC", Linux security gateway,  IEEE 802.11 radio LAN.

Acorn RISC-OS and BBC Micro programming (applications, tools, operating system modules in assembler, BASIC, C).

(Spare time generally dominated by child maintenance!)

Other details:

Familiar with a number of formal definition and programming languages.

Attendance at a number of computer security, internet protocol and low power radio system conferences.

Attendance at a large number of ISO (and some CEN/CENELEC) standards meetings.

Have published in the areas of network security, conformance assessment and low-power protocol design.


Summaries of Areas of Expertise

The following re-arranges some of the experience listed above under separate headings.

Computer system security

Implementation of distributed network security on the Cambridge Distributed Computing System.

PhD in network Authentication.

6 years designing secure Local Area Networks for CESG (part of GCHQ in the UK).

Developed wide variety of security mechanisms in ISO 10181 (ISO security frameworks standard).

Configuration & use of FreeSwan Linux IPSEC solution for home/work networking.

Supervised 2 PhDs in Location Confidentiality & Access Control and 4th year project in Secure Voice over IP.

 

Academic

A number of papers (Covert channels, ODP traders, Low-power protocol design) a list of publications can be found at http://homepage.ntlworld.com/gray.girling/work/Publications.html

Ph.D./4th year B.A. student supervision (security)

MA/Ph.D. student vivas (interface design/security)

Reviewer of submitted papers in various subjects

 

Software Engineering (Embedded & Application programming)

Installation of "netbind" modular switch on Intel IXP 1200 processor  (using ARM-linux) for MPLS gateway.

Linux port + ATM driver for IDT ("Banyan") MIPS processor

Embedded Environment Kernel "EEK" (and build environment) design & implementation including ports to various hardware bases.  EEK is a small message-based multitasking O/S based on the "µCos" kernel.

"ATMos" TCP/IP and related protocols, ATM and Ethernet design and implementation, maintenance (subsequently used as basis of commercial product).

ARM-based Monitor ROM modularization, implementation and porting - remote debugging, flash filing system, booting over ATM.

Linux LAN Emulation driver for Virata ATM protocol processor.

"TRIPOS" device drivers, tasks, utilities and maintenance.

Simple Z80 operating system implementation.

Familiar with a number of programming and scripting languages including object orientated ones.

Extensive microprocessor assembler programming.

At home: 6502 wordstar style screen editor, Acorn "RISC-OS" modules, tools, paginators, WIMP code, Microsoft Access/Visual Basic accountancy package  (in support of a business).

 

Security and communications (OSI) related standardization

9 year involvement in ISO security standards (especially ISO 10181, the OSI security frameworks)

Attendance at ISO OSI (JTC1/SC21) meetings 1988 - 1994

Seminal contribution to CEN/CENELEC taxonomy of security standards

Analysis of various security criteria standards

 

Formal requirements specification

Large volume of Z specification for secure LAN design

Some knowledge of CSP and VDM

 

Open Distributed Processing standardization

Contributions to BSI ODP panel improving ODP Reference Model

Wrote a security architecture for ODP Reference Model

 

LAN and WAN networking, design and implementation

Protocol stack design for Prototype Embedded Network (PEN) radio-computer nodes including low-power MAC Protocol implementation over radio.

"Quiver" design and implementation - Prolog-like modular interpreted language supporting migration in frequently partitioned networks.

Remote debug and boot servers (Monitor ROM and ATMos) and clients (MS-DOS and Unix).

Early experience with "Cambridge Ring" systems and Project Universe satellite backbone LAN system.

Authentication server and debugging server implementation (and associated applications).

6 years distributed system design with accent on security (as above).

TCP/IP and related protocols (e.g. ICMP, RIP II) implementation over ATM and Ethernet.

Network and Application layer architecture from OSI standards.

Development of fault tolerance model.

Contribution to directly relevant Open Distributed Processing (ODP) standards.

Application of ODP to Telecoms in "CASSIOPIEA" European project.

Work in Advanced Network System Architecture (ANSA) programme (including federation with OMG's "CORBA").

Design of architecture for trusted distributed network systems.

Involvement in ISO/IEC JTC1/SC21, the committee that defined the OSI "7-layer" model.

 

Hardware Design

Outline of specification method appropriate for hardware implementation of layered protocols in VHDL

Initial VHDL specification and animation of MAC-symbol "layer" in FPGA to support low power radio nodes

 

Project management

Lead small team implementing PEN mobile low-power device network

Chair of BSI IST/21/-/1/1 (communications security standards) for 5 years

Management of DTI standards contract

De facto management of "PROST" project with APM, NIST, OMG, NPL and University of Kent at Canterbury

Also of APM's "Cassiopeia" involvement

Personal management of short DMR contract

Secretary of childrens' after school club for 3 years